Boy rescued from sand dune now in good condition, continues to improve

Staff report

The boy rescued last week after being buried for hours in an Indiana sand dune has had his condition upgraded to good as his health continues to improve, hospital officials said today.

Thursday, word came that Nathan Woessner was sitting up, watching cartoons and talking. He was taken off a ventilator and had begun to breathe on his own.

On July 12, Nathan fell into a hole as he followed his dad to the top of Mount Baldy at Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. He was buried 11 feet below the surface for four hours before rescuers could get to him.

Today, Comer Children's Hospital released a statement from Nathan's doctor:

"Nathan continues to improve, and he has been upgraded to good condition," Dr. Rachel Wolfson said in an emailed statement.

Sand lodged in Nathan’s lungs created pneumonia-like symptoms and was flushed out daily. The young boy was kept sedated for much of the last week but is now recovering from that sedation.

Dr. Tracy Koogler, who attended to Nathan over the weekend at University of Chicago Medicine Comer Children’s Hospital, said at a press conference earlier this week that Nathan is expected to make a full or nearly full recovery.